The 2008 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency

The 2008 CIA World Factbook - United States. Central Intelligence Agency


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entities that are associated in some way with an independent state. "Country" names used in the table of contents or for page headings are usually the short-form names as approved by the US Board on Geographic Names and may include independent states, dependencies, and areas of special sovereignty, or other geographic entities. There are a total of 266 separate geographic entities in The World Factbook that may be categorized as follows:

      INDEPENDENT STATES

      194 Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antigua and

       Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, The

       Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize,

       Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil,

       Brunei, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon,

       Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China,

       Colombia, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the

       Congo, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech

       Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador,

       Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia,

       Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, The Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana,

       Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy

       See, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland,

       Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati,

       North Korea, South Korea, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia,

       Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg,

       Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta,

       Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Federated States of

       Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique,

       Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, NZ, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria,

       Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay,

       Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Rwanda,

       Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,

       Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal,

       Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia,

       Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan,

       Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tajikistan, Tanzania,

       Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia,

       Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, UAE, UK, US, Uruguay,

       Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

      OTHER

      2 Taiwan, European Union

      DEPENDENCIES AND AREAS OF SPECIAL SOVEREIGNTY

      6 Australia - Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island

      2 China - Hong Kong, Macau

      2 Denmark - Faroe Islands, Greenland

      9 France - Clipperton Island, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Mayotte, New Caledonia, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Wallis and Futuna

      2 Netherlands - Aruba, Netherlands Antilles

      3 New Zealand - Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau

      3 Norway - Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard

      17 UK - Akrotiri, Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory,

       British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dhekelia, Falkland Islands,

       Gibraltar, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands,

       Saint Helena, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Turks and

       Caicos Islands

      14 US - American Samoa, Baker Island*, Guam, Howland Island*, Jarvis

       Island*, Johnston Atoll*, Kingman Reef*, Midway Islands*, Navassa

       Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll*, Puerto Rico, Virgin

       Islands, Wake Island (* consolidated in United States Pacific Island

       Wildlife Refuges entry)

      MISCELLANEOUS

      6 Antarctica, Gaza Strip, Paracel Islands, Spratly Islands, West Bank, Western Sahara

      OTHER ENTITIES

      5 oceans - Arctic Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Southern Ocean

      1 World

      266 total

      Environment - current issues: This entry lists the most pressing and important environmental problems. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry:

      Acidification - the lowering of soil and water pH due to acid precipitation and deposition usually through precipitation; this process disrupts ecosystem nutrient flows and may kill freshwater fish and plants dependent on more neutral or alkaline conditions (see acid rain).

      Acid rain - characterized as containing harmful levels of sulfur dioxide or nitrogen oxide; acid rain is damaging and potentially deadly to the earth's fragile ecosystems; acidity is measured using the pH scale where 7 is neutral, values greater than 7 are considered alkaline, and values below 5.6 are considered acid precipitation; note - a pH of 2.4 (the acidity of vinegar) has been measured in rainfall in New England.

      Aerosol - a collection of airborne particles dispersed in a gas, smoke, or fog.

      Afforestation - converting a bare or agricultural space by planting trees and plants; reforestation involves replanting trees on areas that have been cut or destroyed by fire.

      Asbestos - a naturally occurring soft fibrous mineral commonly used in fireproofing materials and considered to be highly carcinogenic in particulate form.

      Biodiversity - also biological diversity; the relative number of species, diverse in form and function, at the genetic, organism, community, and ecosystem level; loss of biodiversity reduces an ecosystem's ability to recover from natural or man-induced disruption.

      Bio-indicators - a plant or animal species whose presence, abundance, and health reveal the general condition of its habitat.

      Biomass - the total weight or volume of living matter in a given area or volume.

      Carbon cycle - the term used to describe the exchange of carbon (in various forms, e.g., as carbon dioxide) between the atmosphere, ocean, terrestrial biosphere, and geological deposits.

      Catchments - assemblages used to capture and retain rainwater and runoff; an important water management technique in areas with limited freshwater resources, such as Gibraltar.

      DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloro-ethane) - a colorless, odorless insecticide that has toxic effects on most animals; the use of DDT was banned in the US in 1972.

      Defoliants - chemicals which cause plants to lose their leaves artificially; often used in agricultural practices for weed control, and may have detrimental impacts on human and ecosystem health.

      Deforestation - the destruction of vast areas of forest (e.g., unsustainable forestry practices, agricultural


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